PFF blasts organisers for National Games snub

LAHORE -Pakistan Football Federation President Makhdoom Syed Faisal Saleh Hayat Saturday blasted the organisers of the 31st National Games for exclusion football from the lost of disciplines. Speaking to reporters at FIFA Football House he said that with Pakistan preparing for London Olympics, AFC Challenge Cup and SAFF Championship in coming year 2011, the decision of the Pakistan Olympic Association (POA) was deplorable. It will be sixth Games on Khyber PK after 1958, 1974, 1982, 1990 and 1998 at Peshawar. Such attitude towards the worlds No.1 is pathetic as it is also most watched game in Pakistan. If hockey can be drafted back into the list of disciplines and provided with security, why not sports, he said. Chief Secretary Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Ghulam Dastagir Akhtar, Provincial Sports Minister, Syed Aqil Shah, provincial government officials, representatives of FC, PAF, Peshawar Cantonment, Police, Pakistan Olympic Association and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Olympic Association reviewed the provision of foolproof security arrangements for the players, officials and spectators for the Rs 60 million Sports Gala which will commence on December 25 at Qayyum Sports Complex - the host of 1985 Quaid I Azam International Football event and 2005 Pakistan-India Football Test. Faisal, also AFC Disciplinary Committee Chairman, has strongly recommended the concerned authorities to review this decision and asked for the game of football to be included in the forthcoming National Games. Hockey re-gained possession with wushu but football was still out of favour. He also expressed surprise over statement of POA President Lt. Gen (Retd) Syed Arif Hasan who said: Considering the security concerns, we tried to limit the risk by reducing the disciplines. A few weeks ago KP Information Minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain confirmed that KP government was capable of providing security to players and officials of the National Games. Thus, there is no need to shift the scheduled Games from the province on the pretext of poor security arrangements. Pakistan Air Force also completed their 15 Pakistan Premier Football League home matches at Peshawar successfully with six teams from Karachi, two from Lahore, Rawalpindi, one from Islamabad, Sahiwal, Faisalabad, Nushki, Chaman enjoyed their time at the city. Meanwhile Aqil Shah, also LOCs head, said that the successful conduct of the KP Games had proved that the security situation had improved and they were capable of holding the National Games without security fears. These types of decisions from POA will send negative impression to all those who are associated with the game or want to seek their future in it. There was not a single athlete in track and field event of Asian Games and Commonwealth Games but still athletics is in the Games for the reasons best known to high ups. He also caused surprise over Arifs remarks who said that he wanted to place emphasis on the sports and not get bogged down by a chaos. He said that the Anti-Doping Commission of Pakistan (ADCP) had imposed bans on athletes who failed dope tests during the 42nd National Athletics Championship in Islamabad last July, but still they were in the Games. PFFs Secretary General Lt.Col (r) Ahmed Yar Khan Lodhi said that World Cuppers and Olympians are furious over the omission and are looking forward to condemn this ruling in every possible way. Lodhi stated that there were over 60,000 registered football players in Pakistan and the number of unregistered players, according to a rough estimate was more than one million.